Hello all,

I will be visiting Cumbria for the first time in May - does anyone have any suggestions/recommendations on what to see, mining wise, while I am there? I will be visiting from the USA, and hope to be able to cram a hardhat and headlamp into my luggage. I have been to northern Wales before, and been down in some of the big slate mines there (and metal mines here in the US, of course), but thought I should see what is up in the north of England. I will be staying in Keswick May 10-13. Smallcleugh certainly looks interesting, and not that far away. But any suggestions on what to see, either in regards to underground or to interesting surface ruins, will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

You have picked a good spot to stay keswick is surrounded with mines. Smallcleugh is a nice mine to visit and with the visitors centure there at Nenthead and another good one over the hill at Killhope you could make a good day of it

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A good place to start is Keswick mining museum.
http://www.keswickminingmuseum.co.uk/ 

Mr Tyler will point you in the right direction.

While you're taking in Ian Tyler's excellent museum, buy a copy of his book, "The Lakes and Cumbria Mines Guide". While it doesn't cover the Nenthead (Smallcleugh) area it will give you lots of potential other sites to visit.

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Why not try and get hold of the above mentioned book before you leave US, then you can have a good read and plan stuff in advance?

If quarries come under your interest in 'mines' there is of course Honister within easy reach of Keswick and south, in the Coniston area the impressive Old Man Quarries - Moss Head and Spion Cop - though not easy to find if not familiar with the area.
Saying that, if you go to Smallcleugh you could spend a week there just scratching the surface!
:blink:

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Thanks for all the suggestions. Quarries certainly do fall under my area of interest - particularly since they are very different from the metal mines I am familiar with here in the US.

I actually have the Alastair Cameron book 'Slate from Coniston' and Ian Tyler's 'The Lakes & Cumbria Mines Guide', both of which have a wealth of information - and of course I have looked at mine photos on aditnow and mine-explorer. But it is almost information overload, and often not clear whether the workings of any particular mine are readily accessible, gated, require SRT, or are otherwise something I should stay out of without someone familiar with the mine. So recommendations/suggestions from people who are familiar with the area help a lot.

To be honest, there aren't that many which I would recommend visiting on your own. Apart from safety considerations, you would miss out on so much.

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All of the Nenthead mines are gated but not locked, Smallcleugh in particular gives scope for days of wandering underground. Its also a pretty safe one to wander. Nenthead all by itself could occupy you for weeks.
There are numerous mines in the Lakes that are worth a wander, Force Crag is pretty good both above and below ground and very near to Keswick. Honister Slate mine is tourist orientated but well worth the look as its not far from Keswick, for quarry related stuff Threlkeld Quarry museum is also worth a look

Thanks for the information/recommendations Jagman. Definitely plan to visit Smallcleugh - and and spend some more time looking at mine photos before I leave. And good to know the mines around Nenthead are not locked.

By the way, I understand we met last year. I was the American that Miles had along on the trip into the slate mine near Ffestiniog.
🙂

Ah yes that would be me. 😉
Up until last year I spent pretty much my whole life living in North Cumbria and the odd bit of Northumberland, now living down in tropical North Wales.
Coming back for more then? :lol:

Yes, coming back for more. A few days up in Cumbria first, then a longer stay back in northern Wales.

Your posts last summer regarding the Wrysgan incline made me suspect you were someone I knew.
😉

From your emails I suspect you are quite capable underground but I question the wisdom of visiting Smallclough on your own. Particularly as you have limited gear with you, I note nobody mentioned that it is wet in places and that there are some very interesting climbs and crawls it is easy enough to get lost and into trouble. It is place not to be taken lightly and you do need to have some sort of back up in terms of lighting and for someone to know where you are.

I agree with Heb talk to Ian Tyler first at the Keswick mining museum he will give you the low down what is worth doing

Mike

From your emails I suspect you are quite capable underground but I question the wisdom of visiting Smallclough on your own. Particularly as you have limited gear with you, I note nobody mentioned that it is wet in places and that there are some very interesting climbs and crawls it is easy enough to get lost and into trouble. It is place not to be taken lightly and you do need to have some sort of back up in terms of lighting and for someone to know where you are.

I agree with Heb talk to Ian Tyler first at the Keswick mining museum he will give you the low down what is worth doing

Mike

Having lived above Smallcleugh for 11 years I would say its a very stable (or very slow moving is maybe a better description) mine. Water is no higher than knee level and all the shafts/sumps are clearly visible.
There are no concealed false floors to worry about.
Maps of the mine are also easily available and you cant realy get lost for very long if you can read a map.
Perhaps I'm biased but I would consider Smallcleugh one of the safest and easiest mines in Cumbria to wander around.
Also I have met and been underground with nwminer last year, I would think it well within his capablities, Rampgill too for that matter but that is a lot wetter 😉
Perhaps spending several years wandering under Nenthead alone makes me a bit blase about the place but I do think its one of the easier mines, obviouslt if you start wandering deeper and deeper you risk getting lost but stick to the map and I cant see many problems

Mike, I appreciate your and Monty Stubble's concerns, and taking the time to try to keep me from getting in over my head in Smallcleugh, or elsewhere.

I know there are many that frequent this site (Jagman for one!) that have done far more large mines than I have, and things much more technical than I will ever do. But just to help ease your concerns, I have been doing mines since the mid 1970's, mostly in the northwest US (where none are really all that huge) but also a number in Colorado. A fair number I have been into alone, as there is no mine explorer community here similar to the UK, or at least none back then. When alone, I am very consious of that fact, and act with an appropriately higher level of caution, including at times making the decision not to head in further or into questionable areas which I might otherwise be inclined to explore. I always have backup lighting (whether alone or not) and in a mine of appreciable extent and complexity such as Smallcleugh, if alone would likely take two. I do have a couple of Smallcleugh mine maps I pulled off the web. So while there is certainly more risk associated with being alone in Smallcleugh, I suspect the risk is still less than being in some more unstable mine, even with the best equipment and skilled companions. I would certainly rather be with someone familiar with the mine, if for no other reason than I could concentrate on what there was to see and have someone to answer questions - but if that is not possible I would rather have a chance to see what I can, even if it is not quite as much as I could see with someone who knew the mine, than to see nothing at all.

And all this being said, I received a PM offering to take me into the mines - so I am hoping that will work out and all your concerns will be for nothing.

And on a completely different subject, Mike, thanks again for posting the books I ordered last summer from Silverton, CO, to save me a bit of postage.
🙂